New $44 million charter school building opens in Washington Heights
NEW YORK (PIX11) – There's a lot of music in the air in Washington Heights.
That's because there was a concert celebrating the opening of a new building for a charter school for the musically gifted.
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Anthony McGill, the principal Clarinetist at the New York Philharmonic, attended the opening of this new $44 million Washington Heights and Inwood Music Community Charter School building.
Jazz Great Wynton Marsalis gave a Citizen Artistry Award to the dean of Juilliard's preparatory division, Wesley Sprott.
And composer Kebra-Seyoun Charles performed on the double bass.
But the real stars were the Whin Students, who have two periods, five days a week of choir and Orchestra.
This charter school was founded in 2016, but it hasn't received this state-of-the-art building until now.
Its eight-story facade was inspired by sheet music, with the windows looking like music notes.
The school aims to instill a love of music and learning in its 500 students, who attend Kindergarten through eighth grade.
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'The goal really is to create empowered children who have the skills and ability to go out into the world however they choose,' Charlie Ortiz, WHIN's executive director, told PIX11 News. ' what we find is a lot of them are really good musicians but a lot are really good scientist or mathematicians or readers,' he added.
For students, parents, and music educators, it's a win-win.
'We're providing lessons every day through Juilliard's MAP teachers, and working with staff here to provide great music education for the students,' McGill, artistic director of Juilliard's music advancement program, told PIX11 News.
Wynton Marsalis, the Jazz At Lincoln Center director, said, 'The facilities are unbelievable, and I love the Community feeling of it.'
Myah Serrano, 12, a WHIN student, told PIX11 News: 'Playing the Viola not only does it give the opportunity for high school recommendations, but it has opened another mindset on how I want to have my future continue.'
From here, many eighth-grade graduates aspire to attend prestigious performing arts high schools throughout the city.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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